Wednesday 1 August 2012 14.40 EDT
First published on Wednesday 1 August 2012 14.40 EDT

An inquest jury has concluded that police used unsuitable and unnecessary force on a man who died in custody, with officers failing to uphold the detained man's basic rights as he collapsed after being pinned down for eight minutes.

In one of the most damning verdicts in recent times concerning a death in custody, the jury in the inquest of Sean Rigg, found that the Metropolitan police made a catalogue of errors which "more than minimally" contributed to Rigg's death.

During his detention, the jury found Rigg was held down in a V shape, in a prone position for eight minutes, despite it taking 30 seconds to handcuff him.

During the restraint he was placed face down, with his legs bent back, in a caged footwell of a police van. The jury found that Rigg was struggling but not violent and officers failed to spot the deterioration in his health.

Rigg, 40, was a musician who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia.

The jury found the NHS was also culpable. The South London and Maudsley NHS Trust had not ensured that Rigg had taken his medication for two months, nor did they conduct a mental health assessment, which the jury found also contributed to his death. The jury found the trust care was inadequate and that for 10 days they had missed signs that his mental health was relapsing. The case draws together several issues of acute concern to Britain's black communities; from deaths in police custody to concerns about their treatment by mental health services.

Rigg's family called for a public inquiry into the number of deaths in custody and for criminal prosecutions.

Rigg was living in a south London hostel in August 2008 as his mental health deteriorated. One afternoon he smashed up a gazebo and made karate moves which staff viewed as threatening. They called the police who did not respond to several pleas for help.

Rigg was then thought to have attacked passers by. Three hours after the first 999 call, police responded. He was restrained by three officers on the Weir estate in Brixton.

The jury at Inner London South coroner's court returned a narrative verdict which said that:

• The police failure to respond to 999 calls for help from hostel staff was "unacceptable and inappropriate."

• There was poor communication between police officers when they arrived. Rigg's history of mental health problems which made him vulnerable, was known to police and "readily accessible" but the information was not passed on.

• Despite other deaths involving police restraint, the jury said in this case it was "questionable" if guidelines meant to prevent such deaths were sufficient or followed.

The jury said: "The level of force used on Sean Rigg whilst he was restrained in the prone position at the Weir Estate was unsuitable.

"In addition there was an absence of leadership; this led to a failure to take appropriate control ."

Police did not assess Rigg's condition which was "inadequate" and they failed to treat him as a vulnerable person, taking him to a police station instead of a hospital or specialist facility, said the jury.

The jury's criticism of the police continued: Once in the police station, where he was losing consciousness, "there

was an absence of appropriate care and urgency of response" which again contributed to his death and "both the action and decision of the police to stand Sean Rigg up was unacceptable and inappropriate."

The jury also found that police doubts that Rigg was really unwell was another failing as was the "failing to secure an ambulance as quickly as possible".

The jury said: "Whilst Sean Rigg was in custody the police failed to uphold his basic rights and omitted to deliver the appropriate care."

Efforts to revive Rigg, who had previously been physically healthy, failed.

The jury said that death was caused by cardiac arrest, partial positional asphyxia, that is the position officers held him in, aschaemia, which is the restriction of blood flow to body tissues leading to oxygen or glucose depletion, and acute arrhythmia.

The seven-week inquest had seen police accused of lying. Rigg's family issued a statement calling for the Crown Prosecution Service to bring criminal charges and for a public inquiry into deaths in custody.

IRigg's family said the inquest had been painful: "This pain has been compounded by officers at best misleading the jury and at worst lying under oath. The evidence we have heard has left us in no doubt that Sean died as a result of the wilful neglect of those who were meant to care for him and keep him safe.

"When the police did eventually arrive, they restrained him, arrested him for theft of his own passport, put him in the back of a police van, drove him with sirens, not to the hospital for urgent medical care, but to Brixton police station, left him in a perspex cage in the van and finally brought him to the caged area at the back of the station where he died on a concrete floor, surrounded by police officers."

Julia Tomlinson, widow of Ian Tomlinson who died during the G20 protests, said: "We know the challenges they will have faced in fighting for justice and hope this outcome will pave the way for stronger accountability of police officers over their use of force."

Commenting on the verdict the Met's Assistant Commissioner Simon Byrne, said: "We sincerely regret the death of Sean Rigg and on behalf of the Metropolitan Police Service I wish to extend our deepest sympathy to his family and friends. It is always a matter of deep concern when someone dies in our care.

"It is clear from what the jury said and our own conclusions that the way we handled the calls about Sean's behaviour let us down and set off a series of events that resulted in him being taken ill whilst being restrained and dying in police custody.

"Despite the best efforts of a doctor who was in the custody area at the time and the officers who tried to resuscitate him, Sean died.

"Our officers deal with challenging situations every day and in this case they responded to a difficult set of circumstances. We recognise the sensitivities involved in dealing with people suffering from mental health issues. We have clear policies and procedures in place for dealing with these situations and work with a wide range of organisations to improve our care of such vulnerable people."